Sales is a broad field that includes various jobs, levels, mediums, and organizations. You might sell directly to consumers or companies, close all of your sales over the phone or in person, specialize in generating new leads, or only sell to enterprise-level enterprises. And sales representatives are employed by almost every firm in almost every field. As a result, your possibilities are almost limitless.
If you love the thrill of selling, the art of negotiating, and the sense of closing a sales deal, then the sales industry might be the perfect fit. However, to break into the sales industry, you must have the best sales resume to highlight your competencies and entice the employer.
In this post, we’ll outline tips to follow to write the best sales resume.
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How To Write The Best Sales Resume
Here is a list of tips on how to write the best sales resume.
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Tip 1 – Include These Key Sales Facts
Success in the world of sales is judged by the number of sales you can make and how much revenue you bring in. Because of this, your sales resumes should heavily feature hard numbers that highlight your previous accomplishments.
Including key sales facts in your sales resume proves your value. So, it’s important to use numbers and data to show your accomplishments and your work’s impact. For instance, instead of saying that you improved efficiency, write that you “Developed a new process that improved efficiency by 15 percent.”
While the sales industry is vast and diverse, a few fundamental elements must be in every sales resume. They include:
- Where you have sold/regions you’ve managed (e.g. San Francisco, southwest, EMEA)
- The types of products you’ve sold (e.g. SaaS, office supplies, employee benefits packages)
- The types of customers you’ve sold to (e.g. consumers, emerging businesses, healthcare organizations)
- Who you’ve worked with (e.g. developers, managers, C-level executives)
- Deal sizes (e.g. $50K, 13 locations, 125 users)
- Length of an average sales cycle (e.g. four weeks, six months)
- Quota achievement (e.g. 104% quota achievement for Q3)
In addition to that, recruiters will, of course, be interested in your work history, career progression, education and training, technical skills, and achievements, too (more on that below), but your resume will be strengthened immensely by including the above details first and foremost for each of your past sales roles.
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Tip 2 – Use the Right Lingo
Just like every other industry, the sales industry has a unique language that goes on to show the level of proficiency and competency in the field. What this means is that your sales resume should contain certain sales terminologies. Therefore, you are expected to use the right keywords.
In addition, most companies use the Applicant Tracking System (ATS) while screening candidates for a job. The ATS screens your resume for certain keywords to determine whether your experience matches the job. If your sales resume falls short of the specific word requirements, the ATS will most likely discard your application. In other words, always optimize for related keywords when writing your sales resume.
You can use the following common keywords listed below to highlight your level of experience and why you are the best candidate for the job.
- Account Management
- B2B
- B2C
- Business Analysis
- Cold Calling
- Consultative Selling
- Customer Relations
- Executive Relationships
- Forecasting
- Lead Generation
- Leads
- Negotiation
- Networking
- Overcoming Objections
- Pitch Decks
- Presentations
- Prospecting
- Quota
- Relationship Management
- Return on Investment
- Sales
- Sales Cycle
- Territory
Tip 3 – Highlight those vital numbers in your sales resume
Quantifying your experience is highly important in sales as it goes on to show results that prospective employers want to see. It highlights your level of progress and consistency and how result-oriented you are.
Here’s what it might look like:
- Reached 99% quota achievement for FY 2018
- Delivered 115 new, viable sales leads resulting in $220K in new revenue for Q2
- Called 150+ donors each day, bringing in $13K in contributions in just three months
Suppose you’ve been in the same role for a number of years. In that case, you can also detail your day-to-day responsibilities (like prospecting, presenting, and negotiating contracts) separately from your accomplishments. It will make your resume easier for a recruiter to scan and, even better, make your dazzling achievements easier to spot.
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Tip 4 – Always include training and technical skills
If you’ve attended a relevant seminar or event, don’t fail to attach it to your resume. It shows your level of commitment to growth in the profession, thus, making you a contender for the position.
Sales representatives also rely on a combination of customer resource management (CRM), business development, networking, communication, and tracking tools to perform their jobs effectively. So if you have experience with tools like Salesforce, PowerPoint, Yesware, OrgChartPlus, LinkedIn InMail, or LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you can include them on your resume. Ensure you read through the technical requirements section of every job posting so that you can include all the relevant skills on your resume.
Tip 5 – Use bullet points
Break down your sales resume into bullet points that allow for easy itemizing and understanding of its content. Additionally, your sales resume should follow a chronological order. As a job seeker ensure you fix in career experiences not more than 10 years old. This way, it keeps your resume updated and easy to read.
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Tip 6 – Proofread
Before sending out your resume, ensure you proofread to ensure that it’s totally error-free. You can ask a reliable friend or family member to take a look at it too.
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What To Avoid When Writing A Sales Resume
When writing a sales resume, there are a good number of things you should avoid. Those additions you are expected to leave out are most likely going to sell you short or pass the wrong message.
Here is a list of the top three don’ts of sales resume writing:
Don’t be inconsistent
Maintain a simple and consistent resume structure. For example, if you start each bullet point with a verb, don’t flip to a noun halfway through. Consistency, like a strong sales presentation, makes your resume message clearer and more convincing.
Don’t use an objective statement
In place of an objective statement, compose a professional overview that emphasizes your key abilities and competencies.
Don’t use passive voice
An active voice keeps your resume succinct and action-oriented. For example, write that you “monitored sales metrics” instead of “sales metrics were monitored.” The former sets a more dynamic and engaging tone.
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Best Sales Resume Sample Templates
When a recruiter receives a fresh sales resume, they will be most interested in knowing about the goods you’ve sold, the clients you’ve sold to, the sectors you’ve worked in, and whether or not you’ve met your sales targets. Take notice of how the resume below combines all of this information utilizing concise sections and easy-to-read bullet points as you read through it.
Just as a sales pitch deck serves to sell your prospective customers the benefits of your products, your sales representative resume should sell prospective employers the gains of adding you to their team. Featuring relevant details about your role, quantifying your achievements, and tailoring your resume to include the right keywords will help you to stand out and land those sales interviews.
Sample 1
Sample 2
Conclusion
Your sales resume should sell you in the best possible way it can. Therefore, heeding to the spelled out tips above will help you achieve the best sales resume that will land you that dream job. Cheers!
References
- zety.com – Sales Resume: Examples for a Sales Representative [+25 Tips]
- themuse.com – How to Write a Sales Resume That’ll Close the Deal (Example Included!)
- indeed.com – Marketing and Sales Resumes
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